An Extra Pair of Hands
by AnUbIs985Demet Acargil
Summary: This is my outcome of what happenes after AOD. Some parts aren't completely related to AOD's plot though.


_An Extra Pair of Hands_

By Demet Acargil

Prologue:

Kurtis sat up on his bed, his bandaged chest heaving up and down. Wow, that was some bad dream! He thought. He'd dreamt of the Nephilim; some of their graves had been opened. They were moving stiffly, like mummies in horror films. Kurtis got up to drink a glass of water.

There was a person with him, a face that was unfamiliar. However, he remembered every detail of the face. The woman was a small, with long black hair and dark brown eyes. She possessed a great power, so great that even she didn't know. The mysterious woman stood in front of a mosque. There was also something sparkly in his dream; he also remembered that as he filled his glass. His eyes opened wide when he remembered what it was; he had to sketch it. He stared at his notepad and pencil; the objects floated to his hand. Kurtis opened his notepad and started drawing. When he was done; a gem was staring at him from the notepad. A book flew past his ear and fluttered its pages till the picture of the gem appeared before Kurtis. Kurtis read about the gem and found out it was a diamond. When he finished, he realized that his dream wasn't just a dream. There was one person who could help him. He lifted his phone's receiver and dialed a number…

Lara was reading the morning papers when the phone rang. She had given Winston the weekend off, so she ran to answer the phone.

"The Croft residence."

"Hi, Lara."

Lara recognized the voice. "Hi Kurtis, what' the matter? You wouldn't call unless something was wrong."

"Listen, Lara. I'll be heading to Istanbul. I need you to meet me there. Our business with the Cabal hasn't ended, as far as I'm concerned."

Lara nodded. "I see. Why Istanbul?"

"To tell you the truth, I really don't know. My gut feeling is leading me there. Let's not forget to find a translator; my Turkish is horrible."

Lara smiled at Kurtis' remark. "I have a friend there. She'll help us out."

"Great, I'll meet you there."

"Wait, I should give you my friend's phone number. You'll contact me from there."

Kurtis wrote down the numbers Lara had told him. "Why does she have so many numbers?"

"I only gave her mobile phone, office and house number."

"Ok, see you."

"Bye." Lara hung up when she heard the click. She checked the grandfather clock; it was 9:45 AM. Must be 11:45 there, thought Lara. I'll call her a few hours later. In the meantime, I'll work out. She went to her assault course.

Lara put her weights down two hours later. She wiped her face with a towel and called her friend.

Ayla slumped on her chair hopelessly. She'd just come from the Dean's office and had a fight with him. He didn't approve Ayla's method of teaching archeology. _Screw him!_ She thought as she glared out the window. How she longed for field practice. Ayla heard her secretary's phone ring. "_Now what,_" she muttered. She heard her secretary speak English, which surprised her a bit. Anyway, Nurdan, her secretary, poked her head in and told Ayla that her friend Lara was on the other end.

Ayla picked up the phone with joy and curiosity; they hadn't seen each other for a long time and Lara wouldn't call unless it was important.

"Hello?"

"Hi Ayla; it's me, Lara Croft. Look, in a couple of hours, I'll be in Istanbul. Could you pick me up?"

"Sure I'll pick you up. What's going on? I doubt you're coming as a tourist, am I right?"

Lara sighed at the other end. "To tell the truth, I have no idea. I only know that I'm supposed to meet someone there, that I have unfinished business."

"Hmm, I see." Actually, Ayla didn't see anything at all, but she knew she'd eventually find out. "So, when will your plane land?"

"4PM, if nothing goes wrong."

"Ok, see you then!" Both hung up.

Ayla remained on her chair thoughtfully. It had almost been ten years since they'd seen each other. She leaned back as memories rushed through her head:

Ayla's father was the gardener and her mother was the cook in the Croft mansion. Since Lara was an only child, Sir Henshingly Croft didn't seem to mind the girls playing together. (Actually, Sir Croft didn't approve of Lara playing with the daughter of the employees-the lower class- but Lara did as she pleased.) When Ayla's father died, her mother and she returned to Turkey, but Ayla went back to England to finish her education. Lara and she were last together at Ayla's graduation ceremony. Ayla had to leave the day after, as her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer; she died shortly after Ayla's return.

Her reflection on the mirror caught Ayla's attention. She stood up and walked up to it. "Ten years," she said softly. She studied her face. "Great, another wrinkle," she grumbled. Ayla pulled her cheeks back, hoping the past decade would return. "Face it, you're thirty-seven and you're not getting any younger."

Nurdan knocked on the door and told her that the dean wanted to speak with her again. Ayla huffed and went out of her office.

Lara started packing, but stopped when she touched her pistols. How can I get them through the x-ray unnoticed? Lara had an idea; she unassembled the weapons and put them in different suitcases. "There," she said with a satisfied voice. Afterwards she packed the usual stuff, clothes, toothbrush, etc. Last, she put Kurtis' Chirugai in her suitcase.

A taxi came fifteen minutes later to take her to the airport. Soon, she way on her way to the airport.

_JFK International Airport_

New York City 

Kurtis stared intently at the list of names that were involved with Eckhart. Kristina Boaz was dead, so was Manfred Muller, and Eckhart himself. He knew that Martin Gunderson was alive; what had happened to Karel was a mystery. Kurtis looked at the last name on the list: Albert Rouze. Kurtis' eyebrows furrowed thoughtfully; now _he_ was a true enigma. All Kurtis could find out was his birth date (November 11, 1936), place of birth (Graz, Austria) and his job at the Strahov (an archivist). Kurtis smacked the list against his knee. There's got to be more than this, he thought as he lit a cigarette. If he's the archivist, he must know everything that's going on in there. He checked the notebook his father had given him. Well what do you know? He's Eckhart's apprentice. Too bad I hadn't checked this earlier.

He was a Jew, his family had been sent to Auschwitz and was never heard from again. Rouze must have found a way to hide from the Nazis. Kurtis took out his pen and started taking notes:

If he's Eckhart's apprentice, he definitely is another Dark Alchemist.

In that case, he must be sharing Eckhart's goal: To revive the Nephilim and enslave the human race.

Conclusion: Stop Albert Rouze. But find more about him.

The flight attendant announced that the plane for Istanbul was ready for take off. Kurtis gathered his stuff and headed to the gate.

A tall, bald man dialed a number on his mobile phone. "Hello, Herr Rouze. Gunderson here. Herr Trent boarded the airport." He paused a moment as Rouze talked. "As you know, Herr Rouze, Turks are very hospitable. We will treat him like a king," sneered Gunderson. "Of course Herr Rouze. Auf Wiedersehen."

"God, I hate this traffic," mumbled Ayla angrily. She honked at the car that had passed at the red light. Another car was honking behind her, protesting her stopping at the red light. She stuck out her head out the window and yelled at the driver: "You idiot, are you color blind!"

"We're in a hurry!"

"Well, so am I!" Ayla snapped back. Fortunately the light had turned green. Ayla switched gears and drove on. _How nice, I'm going to be late. _Her eyes darted to the LCD clock; it showed 3:45 PM.

"I'll never make it on time!" Ayla moaned.

Lara stepped off the plan at 4:15, with a slight delay. As she waited for her suitcase to appear at the baggage delivery, she noticed a familiar face approaching her, smiling and waving at the same time. Lara picked up her suitcase, which had come just in time, and quickly walked up to Ayla. Ayla opened her arms and hugged her.

"Lara dear, I've missed you so much!"

"I missed you too." Lara pulled herself away to look at Ayla. "I really did."

Ayla smiled. "I didn't realize until I saw you. She paused. "Are you immune to aging? You haven't changed a bit!" Ayla looked at Lara with envy, remembering her confrontation against her reflection.

Lara shrugged and smiled. "I'm hungry. Lt's eat kebab!"

"Sure why not?"

Lara picked up her suitcase and the ladies headed for the exit.

Chapter1 

Kurtis stepped off the plane at Brussels; something was malfunctioning and needed fixing. They would board later if it got fixed; otherwise, they were going to board another plane. So Kurtis sat down to have a bite to eat; he ordered hamburger and fries. While he waited for his meal to come, he studied his father's notebook. Obscura Paintings? Done that. Engravings? Same. The Periapt Shards? Been dealt with. "Blah, blah, blah," Kurtis muttered softly. He flipped the pages about Rouze; Kurtis had read them over and over in the plane but couldn't find anything useful. He took out another notebook that had belonged to his father; Kurtis had never taken a look at it till now. There was a small lock on the side of the leather binding. Kurtis studied it. The lock seemed to have the similar imprints as his Lux Veritatis ring. Let's try it out, Kurtis thought as he took off the ring and placed it in the lock. It fitted with a faint click and Kurtis turned his ring to unlock the notebook. Kurtis read for a while. The notebook contained information about artifacts of alchemical power. He passed the pages about the Sanglyph. Finally, he found what he was looking for; a sketch of the diamond Kurtis had seen in his dream. He started to read the caption beneath:

"_The Diamond of Artemis, which is believed to be made in 2200 BC, is believed to be buried someplace under the Temple of Artemis in Seljuk, Izmir, Turkey. It is thought to be used by the Amazonian Warrior Priestesses as a totem to ward off the Nephilim race, also by the Ionians for the same purpose afterwards." _

"Interesting," Kurtis mumbled absently. There was a note below the caption, written in his father's handwriting: " Highly powerful artifact. Protect it from the Cabal at all costs. Equally powerful artifacts: The Silver Hyena of Callusk and The Onyx Boomerang. Destroy them to avoid the Nephilim waking."

Kurtis lit a cigarette as he read the transcript again.I'll read more in the plane, he thought. Kurtis looked up and noticed the waitress with his meal. She smiled flirtatiously as she put his meal down. "Thanks," said Kurtis gruffly; he wasn't in the mood to put up with teenagers. He had work to do. Kurtis decided to call Lara's friend as soon as he finished his meal. The estimated time to fly to Istanbul would take less than an hour and he needed someone to pick him up. He didn't know Turkish; he also had no intention of being swindled by taxi drivers.

Kurtis got up, paid the bill and headed to the nearest phone booth. As a habit, he looked around to see if anyone was watching him. He stuck the credit card and dialed one of the numbers Lara had given.

A tired, but melodious voice answered. "_Alo?"_

Kurtis cleared his throat. "Ma'am, I'm Kurtis Trent. I suppose Lara's mentioned me."

"Oh yes, Mr. Trent. Have you arrived to Istanbul?"

"No, I'm in Brussels at the moment. There was something wrong with the plane." Kurtis paused to listen to the announcement. "Excuse me ma'am, but they're announcing my flight. I'll be there in about an hour."

"Of course. Have a good trip Mr. Trent."

"Thanks." Kurtis hung up and dashed towards the gate.

The stewardess gave him a stern look. "We've been waiting for you, Mr. Trent."

Kurtis smiled warmly at her. "Sorry, I had some business to take care of."

"Very well. Take your seat; we'll be taking off soon."

"Was that Kurtis?" Lara asked as she stabbed her fork in the beef in front of her.

"Yes, that was he. He'll be here in an hour. Ayla leaned forward, as if she was going to say something confidential. "Is there something going on between you two?"

Lara lifted her eyebrows and looked at Ayla as if she'd completely lost it. "Us? As in Kurtis and me? Nah."

"Why?"

Lara looked at her. Then she threw her head back and laughed; the other customers looked at Lara curiously. Lara covered her mouth to suppress her laughter.

Ayla fidgeted in her chair uncomfortably. "Did I ask an unsuitable question?"

"No, it's not that. He just has some issues."

"Oh." Ayla paused and waited for the waitress to gather the plates. "Would you like some dessert?"

Lara patted her stomach happily. No, I'm stuffed." She checked her watch; it was behind local time. She pulled Ayla's wrist toward her, checked Ayla's watch and fiddled with hers. "Shouldn't we get going?" Lara looked out the window to view the busy traffic. "It'll take more than an hour for us to reach the airport."

"I agree. I'll ask for the bill." Ayla grabbed Lara's wrist when she realized she was reaching for her wallet. "You're my guest, I will pay."

Lara smiled. "You shouldn't."

Ayla smiled devilishly. "You can buy me a Ferrari and I'll erase all your debts."

"Ha-ha. I forgot your weird sense of humor."

Ayla showed her teeth in return. She paid the bill; the ladies got in the car and blended into the bustling traffic.

Kurtis exited the tunnel and looked around. The airport sure is big, he thought. "Let's see." He looked at the arrows pointing several destinations. The "arrivals" arrow pointed left, so Kurtis headed that way. The long path combined with others and ended in front of the duty-free shops and many plastic seats. It was a typical airport, with people giving typical reactions to typical airport events. Some people were hugging each other, some were crying and waving good-bye, some were running to the gates pulling their suitcases, a few were running towards each other and exclaiming happily. You could see it in any other part of the world; only the faces would be different.

Kurtis studied the faces but he couldn't see Lara. He was about to sit down when he saw Lara and another woman walking to him. That must be Miss Melodious, he thought as he studied the woman with Lara.

She was small, 5ft3in at most. Her dark brown eyes covered half of her face; her long black hair was done in a ponytail. Wire-rimmed glasses rested on her nose and a mole was on her right cheek. She looks like an intellectual gypsy, he thought and smiled at it. He walked up to the ladies and shook Lara's hand.

"Hi Kurtis, you look good. How's your wound?" Lara pointed at his chest.

Kurtis joked about it. "It aches before rain." He faced Miss Melodious and shook her hand. "Kurtis Trent."

"Ayla. I'd tell you my last name, but foreigners find it hard to pronounce," said Ayla and smiled. Her British English was slightly tinted with her Turkish accent. "Do you have any luggage?"

Kurtis shook his head. "Only my backpack."

"Fine then. Let's head home. You might not feel it now, but the effects of jet-lag will come sooner or later."

"Look, I don't want to give you any trouble. I'll book a room someplace."

"Nonsense. You're my guest; let's get going."

They finally reached the parking lot. Ayla and Lara stopped in front of an old Volkswagen.

"This is your car?" Kurtis asked in bewilderment.

Ayla's lips curled sarcastically. "If I knew you were coming Mr. Trent, I'd have taken out my Lamborghini from my garage."

Lara laughed at what Ayla had just said. "Good one!" She gave Ayla a high-five.

Kurtis put his hands up. "I surrender. I'm sorry for being a brat Ayla, but when Lara gave ma all those numbers, somehow I assumed you'd have something expensive."

Ayla shrugged as she opened the door and bent the seat forward. "Get in. As for your remark Kurtis, I spend my money on other things." She started the car as soon as Lara shut her door.

"It's going to be a long and tough way home, brace yourselves.

About three hours later, they had reached Ayla's flat. "Please take your shoes off," said Ayla as she stepped inside. She took Lara's suitcase, headed down the corridor and turned left. Lara followed her.

"This is the guest room. Make yourself at home." Ayla headed to the living room after that.

Books. Shelves and shelves of books were the first thing that caught Kurtis' attention when they had first entered Ayla's apartment. So this is what she spends her money on, Kurtis thought admiringly as he studied the shelves. Most of them were archeology journals and history books, particularly about ancient Greece, Ionia and about the Ottoman Empire lots of books about Ataturk, and many novels. Kurtis was surprised at the number of languages Ayla knew. Most books were Turkish and English; quite a few were German and French, and last but not least, there was Dante's Divine Comedy in Italian. He was quite impressed. Kurtis heard Ayla's footsteps approaching.

"Have you read all those books?"

"Uh-huh. Are you hungry? I don't have much; but I can fix a breakfast type of thing."

"No, thanks." Kurtis paused to yawn. "I'm feeling tired. I think I'll take a nap."

Ayla nodded in reply and pointed at the sofa. "You can sleep there; it's quite comfortable."

Kurtis walked up to Ayla and put his hands on her shoulders. "We really owe you one."

Ayla stepped back as she said: "Glad I could help. Rest now." She quickly walked out of the living room and out to the balcony. She found Lara there, admiring the view of the Bosphorus.

"You're so lucky to be living in Istanbul," Lara remarked.

Ayla didn't reply. Instead, she asked: "Do you know what Kurtis is after? Has he told you anything?"

Lara shrugged. "He didn't have the chance to. I'll find out first thing tomorrow." She returned her gaze to the Bosphorus. The boats were waltzing in the water, the city lights and the purplish sunset reflected on the still water. It was picture perfect.

"Which district of Istanbul are we in?"

"Uskudar."

"Beautiful," whispered Lara. She pulled her hands away from the railings as she said: "It's been quite a day. Good night. I hope we didn't give you too much trouble."

Ayla waved her hand dismissively. "I could use some company. Good night. If you need anything let me now; my room is next to yours."

"Thanks. Good night."

"You too." Ayla noticed a black car with a foreign license plate. She found it rather interesting, but didn't pay much attention. Tomorrow was workday and she had students to teach. She also needed to prepare in case she fell out with the dean again. Ayala went inside and headed to bed.

Martin Gunderson watched the lights go off at Ayla's flat. His phone rang. "Hello? Oh, good evening Herr Rouze. How are you?" He paused as he listened. "Yes, they're all inside. Do you want us to wait?"

"Yes Gunderson, wasn't. Make sure you follow them, especially that Turk. She's not aware of it yet, but in the future she'll cause a lot of trouble. Anyway, wait. I know they'll lead us to those artifacts; we can get rid of them afterwards."

"Of course Herr Rouze. Good night." Gunderson put his mobile phone down as soon as he heard Albert hung up. He got inside the car and stared ahead.

Ayla woke up at 5:00 A.M. She had seen a dream and didn't know what to make of it. Might as well get a glass of water, she thought; then got up to go to the kitchen.

Kurtis tossed and turned in his sleep. He could hear the moans and groans the Nephilim made as they came closer. Kurtis pressed his back against the wall; there was nowhere he could run. His eyes searched desperately for a weapon but couldn't see anything in the dark. He searched for his Chirugai, and then remembered he had lost it.

_Scrape. Scrape. Scrape._ The Nephilim staggered clumsily towards him, their ancient eyes glowing in fury. One of them stretched out its hand, grabbed Kurtis by the throat and lifted him up. The creature muttered something in an ancient language and then squeezed with all its might. _Crack!_

Kurtis gasped and fell down the sofa. He coughed, looked around and involuntarily touched his throat. "Thank God," he whispered and wiped the sweat off his forehead. I could use a beer, he thought as he got up, his chest wound made Kurtis wince in pain as he walked. He heard footsteps coming closer; they didn't sound like Lara's.

"Ayla?" he called out.

Ayla turned on the kitchen light and squinted for her eyes to adjust. "Kurtis?"

"Yeah, it's me. Couldn't sleep?"

Ayla shook her head. "Had a weird dream."

"Tell me about it. By any chance, do you have any beer?"

"Yeah, sure." Ayla opened the fridge and handed Kurtis a can.

"Wouldn't you join?"

Ayla pored herself a glass of water. "I'm going to work; I can't."

"At least keep me company," Kurtis said as he sat down.

"Ok." Ayla sat across him.

There was a long and uncomfortable silence. "What was your dream about?" Kurtis asked.

Ayla sighed and combed her hair with her fingers, trying to remember. "Well, I was in a cave, carrying a torch in my hand. There were writings on the wall that seemed to be in ancient Greek. Uh, I hear noises, as if a lid is being opened. I keep going and see an opened grave; the sarcophagus is open as well. I'm just about to turn and leave, when this bright light blinds me. I see a man who looks like a vulture." Ayla shrugged. "And then I woke up."

Kurtis' blue eyes stared intently at Ayla's dark brown eyes. "Could you tell me what the man looked like? Or better yet, wait a minute here." Kurtis went in the living room and came back with a picture. "Did he look like this?"

Ayla studied the picture and nodded. "What's going on?"

After asking that, her eyebrows went up as her brain made the connection. "He's got something to do with you and Lara."

"You catch on quickly." Kurtis leaned forward. "Did Lara tell you anything about in Prague?"

"No."

"Then I will." Kurtis gave her a summary about Eckhart, the Nephilim race, the Cabal and his duty as the remaining member of the Lux Veritatis.

Kurtis took a sip from his beer and watched Ayla's reaction. She was shaking her head in disbelief. "It's impossible! The Nephilim are just a myth, nothing more!" She pointed at Kurtis accusingly. "This is your case and Lara's not mine. How come I'm dreaming of that Rouze freak while Lara sleeps like a baby? I've got nothing to do with this!" She hissed at him.

Kurtis shrugged. " Apparently you do, princess. Apparently you do."

Chapter 2

Lara got up early that morning; she'd had the best sleep in years. She looked around for Ayla; she was nowhere to be found. Must have gone to work, she thought as she made herself some tea. She headed to the living room and found Kurtis sitting in front of the computer.

"So, why have you brought us here?"

A book flew out of Kurtis' backpack and landed on Lara's lap. The pages turned and stopped at The Diamond of Artemis. Lara read carefully and looked up when she finished. "Do you know where the other two artifacts are?"

"That's what I've been searching for. Aha!" Kurtis read the writings on the computer screen. "The Silver Hyena is somewhere in Madagascar." Kurtis clicked and waited. "It's in an antique shop in Antananarivo, the capital city. It's on sale for one thousand Francs. Which is about seventy-five USD.

"What about the Boomerang?"

"Just a second. " Lara and Kurtis waited in silence, as if the slightest noise would disturb the computer. "There are lots of rumors about its place. One resource says it's in Hobart, Tasmania; another says that it's in the Eyre Peninsula, Australia. They all say something different. And an antique shop in Sydney claims to have it as well. Anderson's Antiques is the name." Kurtis shrugged. "It may even be buried in The Gulf of Carpenteria."

"Interesting."

"One other thing," Kurtis turned to Lara and told her about his dream-and Ayla's.

Lara's eyebrows went up in surprise. "Being a member of the Lux Veritatis, I can understand you having the dream. But Ayla is a different story." She put her hand on her chin. "Maybe you can try tracing her family tree, bloodline, whatever. Who knows, maybe she has a connection with all of this."

Kurtis scratched his head. "I doubt it, but I'll give it a shot. We have nothing to lose."

"Sure. And if she's connected with the Lux Veritatis, she may even help us."

"What's she going to do? Whack the thickest book on her shelf?" Kurtis snickered. "Could be effective actually."

Lara rolled her eyes disgustedly. "I'm serious Kurtis. She knows how to use a weapon. I know so because I'm the one who taught her. I also found this." She got up to open a cupboard and took out a black belt. "She knows martial arts."

Kurtis stared at her. "You love doing this, don't you?"

"What?"

""Disproving all my ideas."

Lara smiled and nodded. "I enjoy it very much. Anyway, we ought to make a plan."

"I think it would be a better idea for us to wait until Ayla comes home. By then I'll find out whether she has the connection. If she is a part of it, we'll include her in to our plans. If not, we won't."

"Ok." She stared out of the window blankly. "If she isn't connected, I'd like to go to Australia. I'd prefer Madagascar, but I have a coupon," joked Lara.

"What about Ephesus? The Diamond is there."

"We'll go there together. How's that?"

"Fine by me. Let's see what we can do about Ayla. Can you spell her last name?"

Lara's gaze darted to the side and she smiled sheepishly. "I don't know, but I had her card with me. Wait a minute; I'll be right back."

"As if I could go anywhere," Kurtis mumbled. He waited for Lara to bring back the card. She ran into the living room. "It's spelled Y-I-L-D-I-R-I-M. Got it?"

"Uh-huh." Kurtis sent an e-mail to a friend of his. This type of in-depth research wasn't Kurtis' area of expertise.

"By the way, this is yours, right?" Lara flung the Chirugai at him; the Chirugai spun and flew towards Kurtis' hand."

He grabbed it and said: "Thanks, I've been looking for this."

"No problem."

Just then, Lara and Kurtis heard a click and the door opened. Ayla came in, tired from the traffic.

"Hi guys." She staggered in, took her shoes off and flung her keys on the table. Ayla approached them as soon as she closed the door. "So, any news?"

Kurtis stared intently at the pendant on Ayla's neck. "Can I see your necklace?"

Ayla took it off and tossed it over to Kurtis. "Sure." The silver pendant had a charm like an opal knife.

Lara was staring over Kurtis' shoulder. "Is that what I think it is?"

"This is a miniature Periapt Shard all right," he replied. Kurtis looked at Ayla. "Who gave this to you?"

"My uncle." Ayla paused. "Why are you asking?"

"You remember what I told you about Lux Veritatis earlier, do you?"

"Yes, I do." She stared at Kurtis as if he completely lost it. "Now, in daylight what you said seems to be really silly. Fighting dark arts? I don't know Kurtis, do you really expect me to believe all that?"

"What do you mean?"

"That I'm connected to your nut job cult."

Lara raised her eyebrows. "We don't know that for sure, but there's a strong chance."

Ayla shook her head in disbelief. "Oh, come on! No way!"

Kurtis spoke in a reassuring tone. "Ayla, I know this is hard to believe.

Ayla kept shaking her head stubbornly. "No, _you_ don't understand! I'm a scientist, for crying out loud. I don't believe in this mumbo-jumbo; there's no such thing as Alchemy!"

Lara opened her mouth to speak but Ayla shushed her. "You shut up!" Ayla stormed out of the living room, into her bedroom and slammed the door.

Lara ventured to follow her, but Kurtis stopped her. "Leave her alone. She needs time to think."

Lara huffed. "You're right." She walked up to the window and stared ahead. "Why don't you check the computer? Perhaps your friend found something."

Kurtis opened the computer and checked the mail. He whistled. "Well, what do we have here?"

"What is it?" Lara ran up to the computer.

"Ayla's uncle was a member too! As unusual as it is, he chose his niece to carry it on." He paused. "It's generally passed on from father to son."

"But she's a Muslim. Weren't Templar Knights Christians? I couldn't make the connection."

Kurtis kept reading. Here's something interesting. When the Templar Knights were established in Jerusalem, a Turkish monarchy was ruling the area, the Eyyubians."

"So?"

"The ruler, Salahaddin Eyyubi was chosen too. Actually, he forced himself in. eventually, Salahaddin Eyyubi defended Jerusalem during the Crusades. Ayla's family is a descendent, despite their modest lives."

"I see." Lara sighed. "I'd better check up on her."

Kurtis nodded absently as he kept reading.

Lara knocked on Ayla's door. "Are you okay?" No response. Lara twisted the doorknob and gasped in shock:

Flame burst out of Ayla's hands, which seemed to rest on her palms. Ayla looked at the doorway and saw Lara. "Lara, what am I doing?" she asked in a bewildered tone, as if she was in a trance.

"Put that out, are you planning to set the house on fire!" The flames slowly disappeared. Lara scolded Ayla: "What were you thinking!" She paused for a moment. "How the hell did you mange to do that?"

Ayla huffed exasperatedly as she plopped down on her bed. "I remembered something my grandfather told me when I was little. He'd said: 'Ayla, never forget the elements of nature; earth, water, fire, air and metal. Always respect them.' I was thinking about what that meant when all of a sudden, I'd set my hands on fire."

Lara shrugged. "Guess I'm the only person in the house who doesn't have extraordinary superpowers."

Ayla sat up on her bed and grinned sarcastically. "Kurtis has superpowers? What does he do, see through walls?"

Lara laughed. "I don't know about that, but he moves stuff around."

Ayla raised her eyebrows. "Weird." She changed the subject. "I'd like to take you guys out to dinner. We'll eat fish and watch the view of Bosphorus!"

Lara's face lit up. "Say, that's what I call an idea. Do I have to wear fancy clothes?"

"No; we're going someplace really casual."

"I wasn't expecting this when you said 'casual'," Lara remarked as she sat on a stool outside a caravan where and old man fried fish and served them as sandwich.

Ayla smiled and took a sip from her Raki. "This is as close as you can get to Bosphorus."

Kurtis was silently enjoying the view. As he watched the small boats sway, he took a big bite from his sandwich and grumbled with satisfaction.

"So much for manners," Lara mocked, rolling her eyes. She looked at Kurtis until she caught his attention. "Shall we tell her our plan?" Kurtis nodded, so she went on. "There are three artifacts of extreme alchemical power. We're going to destroy them. The guy you saw in your dream, Albert Rouze the nut job wants to get them before we do. He's probably planning to kill us as well."

"Why does he want them? Is he planning to sell them in the black market?"

Kurtis shook his head. "Remember what I told you the other night?"

Ayla cleared her throat and straightened up as if she was in an oral exam. "Lived in Biblical times. Half human, half angel. Change appearance. So?"

Lara replied: "You didn't say that the Nephilim will enslave the human race."

"Hmm. So, where do we come in?"

"You've become eager all of a sudden," Lara teased.

Ayla smiled and shrugged. "I could use some adventure. I really missed field practice."

Kurtis chimed in. "We've decide that you should go to Seljuk. Since you're a bit rusty, one of us may accompany you."

Ayla shook her head. "I don't think that's necessary. I can take care of myself," she answered.

"Fine then. In that case, I'll be heading to Madagascar; Lara's heading Down Under."

"When are you guys leaving?"

"The day after, probably. I want to see the Topkapi Palace!" Lara exclaimed.

Kurtis shrugged. "You can do as you please. I'm leaving tomorrow." He put down his glass of Raki. "I'd better stop drinking, or I'll have one hell of a headache. God, this is stronger than ouzo."

Ayla stood up. "We should get going if you're leaving tomorrow."

Chapter 3 

"Dear passengers, last call for Nairobi. Please board immediately," announced the flight attendant.

"This is me," said Kurtis. He shook the ladies' hands and waved goodbye. "Let me know how everything works out."

"Sure thing. Be careful," replied Lara.

"I'm always careful," Kurtis retorted. At that moment, he bumped into a man and apologized. Lara laughed, Kurtis raised his hands in the air and disappeared in the tunnel.

Ayla and Lara stood there until Kurtis' plane took off. Ayla turned to Lara. "So, do you want to go to Topkapi Palace?"

"Of course I do! I wouldn't call myself an archeologist if I didn't go there."

"Let's get going then."

Lara was gaping admiringly at the Kasikci Diamond. "Now that's what I call a diamond! It's bigger than my fist!" She read the bronze plate next to the thick glass case. "And think, it was found in a dump!"

"Almost miraculous," Ayla replied. She felt proud as she watched Lara admire the things in exhibit. These belonged to my people, she thought.

From the reflection of the glass case, Lara saw a familiar face: Martin Gunderson. She hissed at Ayla. "We've got to get out, now!"

Ayla sensed something was wrong, so she exited it a calm manner, with Lara behind her.

"Run for it!" Lara yelled as soon as they were out of the treasury room. Lara and Ayla

Lara and Ayla ran across the courtyard to the exit. They kept running down the cobbled street. Finally, they reached the parking lot. Ayla noticed something interesting. "Lara, I've seen this car follow me around," she said, pointing at the car with the German license plate.

Lara furrowed her eyebrows. "That must be Gunderson's. Let's go, before he catches up."

Ayla started the car once they got in. She was about to get out of the lot when she noticed Gunderson running towards them. She pressed on the gas pedal and drove towards him. Ayla missed him by an inch when he dove to the side.

Lara looked at Ayla in surprise. "I can't believe you just did that."

Ayla shook her head in disbelief. "Me neither."

"Stop doing that!" Lara exclaimed irritably."

"Do what?"

"That."

"Oh, this." A fountain of water gushed from Ayla's right hand, then left. Right, left, right left.

"I'm only practicing," Ayla said innocently, but stopped. She went outside, to the balcony, stared at the parking lot, the returned. "He's not down there."

"Well, at least we don't have to worry about him at the moment."

Ayla changed the subject. "Did you reserve a ticket?"

"Uh-huh. My flight's at 7:30. A.M"

"Then we should go to bed."

"You're right." Both of the went to their rooms to end the day.

"Ayla, are you sure you can handle this?"

Ayla rolled her eyes. "Yes I'm sure Mummy," she replied sarcastically and waved her hand dismissively. "As I said before, I could use some adventure. Don't worry about me."

"If anything goes wrong, give me a call, okay?"

Ayla nodded impatiently. "I will. Don't worry about me." She noticed the impatient stewardess and pushed Lara playfully. "Go now."

"Fine." Lara hugged Ayla. "Be careful." She looked at Ayla behind her shoulder one last time; Ayla waved back. Ayla remained there till the plane took off.

"Yes Nurdan, arrange a substitute for my classes. Yes, I'm fine. I'm just going to take a short holiday. No, I'm not depressed." Ayla paused. "I'm going to Seljuk." She smiled. "Fine I'll visit Virgin Mary's house and light a candle for you. Don't worry; I won't forget. Bye." Ayla hung up and went to pack. She stuffed in everything she might need. At last, but mot least, she put her Desert Eagle in her suitcase, along with forty shells. That should be enough, she thought. She set her alarm clock to 5:30 AM; it was going to be a long ten-hour drive. Ayla peacefully dozed off.

Chapter 4 

Ayla woke up one minute before the alarm and turned it off. She had her breakfast, grabbed her suitcase and went to the parking lot. After tossing her suitcase in the boot, she started the car. She drove through the Pasalimani Avenue; she stopped at a red light and another car stopped next to her. Ayla didn't pay much attention until she noticed the window opening. A muzzle of a gun protruded. Ayla ducked before the gun went off. _Bang!_ Ayla2s glass shattered in pieces._ Bang!_ The tire went flat with a long puff. The car speeded off when the light turned green.

Ayla remained in her curled position for some time, trying to regain her calmness. She got out of the car and shook off the glass pieces off her.

"Great," she mumbled angrily. Fortunately, she had a spare tire. She took it out and replaced it with the flat one. "They owe me twenty minutes," she grumbled. Ayla noticed the little flames had started coming out of her palms. She closed them and stood like that for a moment, trying to think of happy things. Ayla got in the car and drove to the E-5 motorway.

Ten hours after the incident with the car, Ayla stepped inside a small motel. She booked a room and headed to Room 8. Ayla unpacked her suitcase and stuffed the necessary items in her backpack. Her Desert Eagle rested safely in her leather jacket. Ayla fixed her hair in a ponytail and she was all set. She sat on the only chair in the room, studying the map. She took her time, as she wouldn't leave until midnight. There was a tunnel between Virgin Mary's House and The Temple of Artemis; a hidden chamber under The Grotto of The Seven Sleepers joined with the tunnel. Ayla remembered her history lessons and a myth…

When Christianity was banned in Ephesus, which was during the Roman Empire, seven Christians had hid in a cave to protect themselves. According to the legend, these people slept for two hundred years. When they woke up and got out of the cave, Christianity had become the official religion of The Roman Empire These seven people had been buried in those grottos after their deaths.

So many things change in two hundred years. Hell, so many things change in a few minutes! Ayla thought as she stared at the map. Her stomach grumbled. I ought to get something to eat; I'll start work after that. Virgin Mary's house seemed to be a good place to start. She went to the nearest restaurant and prayed that they had kebab.

Ayla walked up to her car, patting her stomach happily. I missed kebab. She dug her hands in her pockets, looking for the car key. A blow came from behind, knocking Ayla down. Ayla sprang up to see who had done that to her. She dodged the right hook and kicked the man's stomach, again and again. She knelt down, swung her left leg at him and knocked him down. Ayla stepped on his throat; she finally got a good glimpse of him.

The man was tall, blond and blue-eyed; like many of the German tourists that visited Seljuk. Ayla looked at him angrily. "Who sent you for this?" No reply. Ayla stepped harder on his neck. "If you don't speak, I'll crush your windpipe. Now tell me, who sent you?"

The man choked. "Martin Gunderson," He replied with a thick German accent.

Ayla's eyebrows went up as the man's eyes flashed with anger. "We will succeed. Your tiny existence won't stop what's coming!"

"_No_!" Ayla stepped on his windpipe and heard a crack. She looked at the lifeless body in shock. _What have I done? What's come over me?_ Ayla decided to shut her conscience up for the moment; it could disturb her later. She had work to do now. Ayla looked around to see if anyone was there, set the body on fire and headed to Virgin Mary's House.

Ayla parked her car in front of an old stone house, in which Virgin Mary had lived for a while. Although it was May, evenings were chilly. Ayla zipped her leather jacket. She approached the door and pounded on it. No sound. Ayla felt the metal lock. It was hard and cold.

Ayla heard an echo in her head. "Remember the five elements of nature…" She touched the lock and an idea came to her head. Ayla stared at her index finger and concentrated. Her index finger became cold and steely gray. It took shape of a lock pick. She stuck her 'lock pick' in the lock, fiddled around a bit; the lock clicked and fell on the grass. Ayla pushed the door; it opened with a loud creak. Her index finger returned to normal as she went in. Her boots thudded against the floor as she approached Mary's statue. She stared at it for a while. She prayed: "I need all the holy help I can get at the moment. God, help me succeed. Amen."

Ayla looked around the statue for a trap door and found it in the rear corner. She pushed the heavy lid.

"Here we go," she muttered and jumped in.

Chapter 5 

The tunnel was long, as Ayla had expected. With her Desert Eagle in one hand, she followed the path. It was dark, so Ayla lit a fire with her free hand. She kept going for an hour or so. The road forked north and west suddenly. Ayla looked ahead and left. "Eeny-meeny-miney-mo," she muttered in a singsong voice, and then turned left.

"Won't this tunnel ever end?" Ayla mumbled as she continued the path, which seemed infinite. _And I thought that this was going to be an adventure!_ She rolled her eyes disgustedly. "Bored, bored, bored," Ayla started singing in a low voice as she kept going. She had no idea her next step might lead her to her doom.

Ayla absently put her step forward. The ground beneath her crumbled, she tried to cling on the wall but her hands slipped. Ayla fell; it seemed as if she'd fall for hours. She landed with a hard thud and everything went black.

Kurtis had lost his sense of time and location when his plane landed on Maputo, the capital of Mozambique. He'd flown from Nairobi to some place else in Kenya, to here… The airport was packed, taking a step forward would be considered a miracle. Kurtis stared in wonder when he saw a middle-aged man with five women following him. Obviously, those women were his wives.

Kurtis shook his head in disbelief. Okay, polygamy may be legal here, but this is too much! He thought as he struggled to find a seat. He was supposed to wait for two hours and fifteen minutes till the plane to Antananarivo took off. He opened a book to read . Kurtis read for about an hour, until he felt that he had to go to the toilet. While he was heading towards the restrooms, he noticed a man following him, the only other white man in the airport. Kurtis heard his inner voice saying: "He has a gun, watch out!" _I will_, he thought. He headed for the stalls with the other man behind.

"So, where are you off to?" Asked the man in English with a mild accent.

Kurtis shrugged as he urinated. "Depends." They flushed at the same time and washed their hands. Kurtis was about to leave when he came face to face with a pistol.

"So long friend," the man said with an evil smile.

Kurtis touched his shoulder and held it tight. "So long."

The man felt his life being drained out of him. He let out a low groan as he slumped on the floor. Kurtis quivered a bit as the man's strength joined his. He ran out, screaming: "Help, doctor!"

"Oh, God." Ayla tried to open her eyes, but she felt as if the gravity was pulling them down. She lay with her eyes closed for a while. Gathering all her strength, or what's left of it, she slowly sat up. Ayla touched her head to check for bumps; the head seemed okay. She finally opened her eyes; everywhere was spinning.

She sat until her vertigo went away, the stood up. _There's your adventure!_ She thought bitterly. The hole Ayla had fallen in was very deep; there was no way she could jump up. She touched the walls thinking she could climb up. They crumbled like stale crackers. Ayla had an idea. She held her palms facing the ground and concentrated. The ground rumbled and rose to its original level. Ayla walked across; as soon as she did, the risen ground crumbled again. Ayla shrugged and went on.

A spike pit was awaiting her. Ayla looked around, then up to see the ropes. She jumped across and grabbed the first rope. "I will not look down," she said softly. But she did and started to feel nauseous. Ayla closed her eyes, took a deep breath and swung across. Ayla grabbed the second rope and clung onto it. _One left. _She swung across three times till she reached the last rope. Ayla jumped and grabbed the final rope. "Here we go!" Ayla landed on the ground and sighed with relief. She peered down at the sharp spikes and shuddered. I like shish kebabs but I don't intend to be one! Ayla thought as she crawled through the tunnel.

The short tunnel ended with an opening to a large room. The walls had cracks that stretched to the ceiling. A pool was in the center of the room. Ayla glanced at the water; names of the parasites she knew popped in her mind. Ayla kept walking around, trying to find- well, she had no idea what she was looking for, but kept walking anyway. She looked at the ceiling, the floor, and the walls, everywhere. _Have I taken a wrong turn?_ Ayla leaned against a wall; the wall sunk, revealing a small room with a lever. Ayla pulled the lever and got out of the small room. As far as she could tell, nothing happened. She walked up to the pool and peered inside. There seemed to be a hole in the base, big enough for a person to swim through. Suppressing all her thoughts about disease and parasites, Ayla dove in the pool and swam through the opening. She turned left, swam down and encountered a door. Ayla pulled the door open and went inside. The path continued up, Ayla swam to the surface and gasped for air. She found an alcove and pulled herself up. "Well, what have we got here," she said as she walked up to a button. Ayla pushed it and heard grumbling from above. "Let's see what happened up there." Ayla dove in the water and followed the path she had taken before. As she returned, she felt something stab her leg, but Ayla was too much in a hurry to look back. She hoisted herself out of the pool, looked around and noticed an opening near the ceiling. Ayla climbed up on a rock, jumped across and kept climbing. She finally reached the opening and crawled through the gap. The room collapsed just the moment Ayla's foot disappeared.

Ayla checked her leg; the wound was big, but superficial. She took out her fist aid kit, cleaned her wound and stitched it. Ayla winced as she slowly got up. Too bad I didn't bring my painkiller with me. She started walking slower, the wound made her lump slightly. Ayla turned right and saw a spiked ball coming at her. She ducked and crawled until the ball stopped swinging. Ayla got up and kept on walking. _Well, I wonder what's next_, Ayla thought as she entered another room. She took out her map and checked it. If the map was right, which Ayla had seriously started to doubt, she was supposed to be under The Temple of Artemis. Let's check this place out, she thought as she ignited a small flame on her palm. It was similar to the room that had collapsed earlier; only this room was smaller, there were many caskets propped up against the wall, and a large statue of Artemis stood tall in the center, her palms outstretched against the ceiling. In the middle of her palms was a gigantic gem. The light that came from Ayla's hand reflected against the diamond, revealing its pale blue color.

"Wow," Ayla whispered as she slowly as she slowly walked up to the statue. The statue was about 2 meters tall. Artemis had a very feminine body, with a slim waist and wide hips. On her chest was a dozen breast shaped, which symbolized prosperity. Her gaze looked ahead, giving her pretty face a cold, distant expression.

Ayla gazed up at the statues palms. _How the hell am I supposed to get that?_ She thought as she approached the pedestal. Ayla stepped on Artemis' sandals, grabbed her arms and pulled herself up. Ayla was now resting on Artemis' arms; she reached out, grabbed the diamond and jumped off the statue. As she put the diamond in her backpack, Ayla heard snapping. The caskets had opened; twenty creatures, which looked anything but human, staggered out of their caskets, moaning and groaning.

"Oh great, just what I needed!'" Ayla exclaimed as she took out her Desert Eagle and started firing. The bullets pierced through the creatures' bodies, but they weren't stopping them. _What am I thinking?_ Ayla thought in terror. _These things probably don't have any organs left; a bullet won't stop them!_ _Oh dear, I'm in trouble. Think God damn it, think!_ Ayla opened her hands and thrust out fireballs. The creatures caught on fire, but kept moving. Ayla concentrated; big boulders came out of her hands, which gave Ayla quite a lot of pain, and crashed against the creatures. This attempt was quite affective; half of the creatures had crumbled against the force. _Let's do this again_, Ayla thought. She strained and pushed as if she was giving birth. The remaining creatures had become dust. Ayla sighed with relief as she passed out from fatigue.

Ayla saw spinning colors when she opened her eyes. Then the ceiling started to come close, then returning to where it was. She groaned as she slowly sat up. Automatically, she checked her head for bumps and bruises. I don't like this new habit of mine, Ayla thought bitterly as she reached out up to the backpack, which had been flung nearby. The diamond was still there.

Ayla's vision had returned to normal, so she got up and looked around. "How the hell am I supposed to get out of here?" She muttered while looking up. Ayla remembered her mother saying: " I don't know how you manage, but you always get yourself in trouble somehow. For no apparent reason!" And she would shake her head. This memory made Ala smile sadly. _I wonder what she'd think now?_ _Aha!_ She'd noticed that Artemis' statue could be pushed. She did and found a hole in the ground. Ayla lit a fire and peeked in the hole. It seemed to be a chute. _Let's see where this leads us,_ she thought and jumped in. After a winding journey, which lasted ten minutes or so, Ayla landed hard on her bottom. "What a way to end a ride," she mumbled, and then got up to wipe off her pants. Ayla started to hear applause out of nowhere; a man in his fifties approached her.

"Congratulations, Fraulein. I was planning to send my men to get the diamond, but there is no need to do that; not anymore."

Ayla narrowed her eyes as she reached for her gun. "Sorry, Herr Rouze. After all I've been through, I'm not intending to give it up."

"Oh, so you're not going for the easy way." Albert Rouze crackled his fingers, like a pianist preparing to playa piece.

"Back off!" Ayla yelled. She outstretched her arms and created a massive hole. Rouze jumped it without any difficulty. He landed right in front of Ayla and punched her in the face; she flew in the air and hit the rock behind her.

Rouze laughed gleefully. "Give up and hand over the diamond," he called out.

"Over my dead body," Ayla muttered between her teeth.

An evil smile covered Albert's lips. "Works for me; I'm not intending to leave any witnesses behind." Rouze ran up to Ayla and kicked her in the stomach. Ayla bent over and groaned, but straightened up and hurled a fireball at Albert. He ducked, but his arm had caught on fire. Albert blew it out, causing Ayla's bewildered look.

"See Fraulein? You can't stop me. Give in and I'll make sure you have a quick death."

Ayla shook her head. Her face crumpled with pain, as her fingers became sharp knives. Her black eyes lit up with fury and revenge. "You've hurt me, now it's my turn," she said coldly. She scratched his face and listened to his cries with pleasure. Albert swung his leg to kick her; Ayla ducked, swung her leg at Albert and kicked him off the ground.

"If it's up to me to stop you, then I shall," Ayla said in a low voice.

"You idiot!" hollered Albert as he sprang up and flung her at the rocks near the chute. Ayla felt her life abandoning her as she heard her bones crush.

Rouze glared at the life less body, took the diamond and vanished in the night.

Chapter 6 

Kurtis gasped as he woke up from his dream. He'd dozed off in his chair while waiting for his plane. He'd seen Ayla dying in his dream; somehow he knew it was true. _I should have gone to Seljuk with her_, he thought angrily. If she was dead, there was someone who could help them. Kurtis went to the nearest phone and dialed a number.

"Hello, is that Diana Lavrenovich? It's me, Kurtis Trent. I need you to do something for me. Yes, it's about her. Is there something you can do?" He paused to hear Diana's answer. "Excellent. I'll pay you as soon as I return. Thank you for your help, Ms. Lavrenovich."

Despite her name, Diana Lavrenovich was a Turk and a shaman, like many of the women in her family. They were shamans a thousand years ago in Middle Asia; they were shamans in Lithuania in the present; and they would be shamans in another place in the future.

As soon as she hung up, Diana headed to the bookcase and pulled out a spell book. She opened the page titled: "Reviving the Slain- Only works on fresh bodies," and started to chant. Diana was sure it would work; this hadn't failed her yet.

Ayla moaned in pain as her eyes fluttered open. "Oh God- what's happened?" She grumbled as she sat up and looked around. Albert Rouze was nowhere in sight. The sequence of events played in her head like a short movie. She found the end rather confusing; wasn't she supposed to be dead? Weird. But lately, everything is, she thought and shook her head. Oh my God, the diamond! Ayla thought as she searched her backpack for Artemis' diamond. No sign of it.

"That son of a bitch took my diamond, I'll show him," Ayla muttered as she stormed off.

Kurtis got out of the airport in Antananarivo (a.k.a. "Tana") and ran back inside because of the rain. He remembered something he'd heard: "There are two seasons in Madagascar; wet and dry." _Talk about wet!_ Kurtis thought sarcastically. _Someone up there's pouring buckets of water._ He stared at the sky and shook his head. I don't think the rain is going to die down, he thought as he dove outside into the pouring rain. Luckily, Kurtis noticed a cab and got in it.

"English?" Asked the cab driver.

"Yes. Downtown Tana, please."

"Of course." The driver switched gears and headed to the motorway.

The rain had died down by the time they reached the motorway. Kurtis stared curiously out the window, his eyes darting left and right, trying to absorb the view. It wasn't very interesting, just lots of plantations but Kurtis found them more appealing than the taxi driver's jokes. He watched the skinny children bend over to pluck the plants out of the ground, the women-children carrying the harvest with their children on their back (Now that's a working mom, thought Kurtis as he watched them). It was quite like Discovery Channel, only live.

Kurtis smiled dismissively at one of the driver's jokes as the driver turned right at the intersection, towards downtown Tana. As they approached downtown, the traffic became heavier; cars, motorbikes, goats, sheep and cattle were trying to travel on the same road- utter pandemonium. After a while, the taxi crawled along the traffic, so Kurtis took out the address of the dealer, to pass the time. The dealer was near Main Street, where most of the tourist junk was sold, but Pierre's Antiques was different. It was a place where the cream of the society would buy smuggled artifacts. Rumor said that Pierre smuggled exotic pets as well, but Kurtis wasn't interested in that. He'd struck deals with Pierre, but nearly all of them ended with Pierre getting beat up. Anyway, about half an hour later the cab stopped at a corner; it would take ten minutes by foot to go to Pierre.

Kurtis raised his eyebrows when he glanced at the taximeter. "Do you have an invisible friend around here? Is there someone in the trunk?"

The cab driver laughed, flashing his white teeth. "Eh? Funny American?"

"No, it's not funny; you've doubled the fare. Do I look like an idiot?"

The cab driver frowned and corrected the taximeter. Kurtis paid and got out of the car and started walking down the street. He tried to avoid the harassing sellers on the street, who were shoving souvenirs in his face and shouting at the same time. Kurtis fastened his pace, crossed the street, walked some more and found the shop. His chest hurt when he lifted his arm to push the door, he clenched his teeth as the bell above the door tingled. A stout, white man appeared from the back. His smile turned upside-down when he saw Kurtis. "Oh, it's you," he said in French.

Kurtis smiled sarcastically as he approached Pierre. "Glad to see you too, Pierre." He studied Pierre's plump figure. "I see you've treated yourself well."

Pierre squinted his eyes and crossed his arms. "I know what you're after," he said triumphantly.

Kurtis' left eyebrow went up. "Oh really? What is it?"

"The Silver Hyena. I have connections," replied Pierre smugly.

"Good. I assume you have it then."

Pierre raised his eyebrows. "It'll cost you."

Kurtis sighed and scratched his head. "How about we make a trade?"

"_Oui_? On what?"

Kurtis grabbed Pierre's arm and squeezed it tight. "Your life. Remember what I almost did to you? Well, I can go all the way." He started to drain Pierre's energy.

Pierre's face turned pale purple. "I-I don't have it. I sold it to a client." He coughed and gasped for air.

"Who is this client?"

Pierre described a person whom Kurtis found rather familiar-Martin Gunderson.

"Did he say anything? Where is he staying? Any idea of where he could be?" Kurtis loosened his grip when he noticed Pierre's convulsing jaw.

Pierre wiped the sweat off his upper lip with trembling hands. "Wait, uh, he gave me a number to contact. He told me he needed more artifacts to complete his collection."

"Give me the number." Kurtis let Pierre go; Pierre ran up to a desk with drawers. As he rummaged through the drawers, he kept muttering: _"Mon Dieu!"_ At last, a triumphant "aha" escaped his lips. Pierre approached Kurtis with a piece of paper. Kurtis grabbed it and stuck it in his pocket. He grabbed Pierre by the collar and said: "If I don't find him, I 'm coming back to get you." He threw Pierre against the desk and stormed out of the shop.

He took a deep breath and put on his shades. _Ok, I have the number, but what am I to do with it? _He wished he had a way to trace Martin's whereabouts, but it was impossible. The thought gave him an idea. He walked down the street until he found a phone, the kind that credit cards are used to call. He dialed his buddy Josh- Josh was a techno-geek; he was the one who'd traced Ayla's bloodline. He waited for Josh to answer.

"Whoever you are, you'd better have a good reason for calling at this time," an angry voice replied.

"Josh, it's me, Kurtis. Sorry I called inappropriately, I forgot the time distance. I need you to do something for me."

Josh's angry voice became surprised and confused. "Time difference? Kurtis, where the hell are you?"

"Madagascar. Look, I need you to trace a number for me. Could you?"

"What the hell are you doing in Madagascar! Weren't you going to go to Turkey?"

"Change of plans. Listen, can you do it? Please? It's very, very important."

Josh had finally awoken. "Sure. Just give me the number and I'll call you in twenty minutes."

Kurtis gave Gunderson's and the booth's number and hung up. He stuck his hands in his pockets and rocked back and forth. His gaze scanned the surroundings for potential attackers. He sighed and took his left hand out of his pocket to comb through his hair. Kurtis checked his watch; it had hardly been ten minutes, yet it seemed like hours. Well, I hope Lara and Ayla are having fun, he thought sarcastically. He knew Ms. Lavrenovich had brought Ayla back; a telepathic bond between people with extraordinary abilities caused it. He wasn't certain whether Ayla had landed anywhere, though.

After a long, six-hour journey, the plane Lara was in landed on Singapore, the passengers were going to change planes Lara hopped off the plane and got in the bus that would take her to the airport.

I wonder how Kurtis and Ayla are doing, she thought. I feel guilty for sending Ayla out on her own; but she insisted on doing it herself. I hope nothing's gone wrong, she tried to assure herself, but the feeling wouldn't leave her. She heard an evil chuckle behind her.

"well Frau Croft, I hope you're having a good time. I sure am."

Lara snapped her head to see who it was. Albert Rouze had a diamond in his hand and an evil smile on his lips. Lara's eyes widened with shock; she couldn't utter a word. Lara reached out for the diamond but Albert pulled his hand back.

"Yes Miss Croft, I took care of your little friend. Quite a fiery spirit she was, but I put her out. I'm going to put you out too Fraulein; just after I finish my business with Herr Trent."

"Stay away from him!" Lara cried. All passengers looked at her curiously because no one was standing at the place she looked. So she pretended as if her cell phone's headpiece was broken. She tapped her ear, as if there was a headpiece apparatus and said: "Hello? Hello? Damn, lost the connection!"

Lara was shocked about Rouze's visit. She wanted to believe that it was just an illusion, but Lara was positive that it wasn't. The vision ,his voice, the way he hissed in her ear… so real. Lara shook her head to chase away Rouze's vulture-face. She felt a great, stabbing pain and a deep sorrow for her friend, but she couldn't mourn now. Lara had to warn Kurtis somehow, the problem was, how was she supposed to reach him now?

Chapter 7 

Hours later, after her encounter with Albert Rouze, Ayla was in her room, pacing back and forth, slapping her head ant muttering: "Stupid! Stupid, stupid, stupid!" She couldn't believe that Rouze did whatever he did and managed to get the diamond. _Lara had faith in me, and I let her down when she needed me the most. What kind of a friend am I?_ Ayla shook her head and tried to chase away the thoughts of guilt, which were trying to take over her sanity. She needed to get the diamond back. The thing was, she had no idea what she was supposed to do, where to start looking… she was plain clueless. Ayla huffed in frustration and sat on the only chair in the small motel room. Lights started flashing in front of her as she winced in pain and clasped her head between her hands. Great, just what I need; my migraine attack! She thought as she rummaged through her bag for a painkiller. Suddenly, as if by magic, her headache went away. Even stranger, Ayla was seeing a ghostly figure standing and smiling at her.

Ayla's dropped and her eyes opened wide. "What in God's name?" She backed away as far as she could and lifted her hands up like a shield. "Whatever you are, back off!"

The ghostly figure took a step towards Ayla. "Silly child, you needn't fear me. You asked for a clue and I shall give it: It's al where it began." The ghost disappeared when it finished its sentence, leaving Ayla stiff with shock.

"What on earth was that?" Ayla touched her face and felt warm sweat trickling down her forehead. She took a deep breath and walked to the bathroom to wash her face. The clue of what? Ayla remembered that she was thinking about where to start looking. One question answered, now, where did all this start? Think Ayla, think. You always have flashbacks, you could really use one now. The conversation she had with Kurtis popped in her mind. She sprang up triumphantly and exclaimed: "Prague, that's it!" Ayla gathered her scattered belongings. She'd always wanted to see Prague, now would be a good opportunity.

_At last!_ Kurtis thought as he picked up the phone.

"Hey Kurtis, I think I've traced your guy," Josh spoke up and gave the address. "If I'm not mistaken, that's a pretty bad district of the city; be careful."

Kurtis felt the concern in Josh's voice. "Don't worry. If I wasn't careful, I wouldn't be alive." The wound on his chest reminded him of its existence; Kurtis took a deep breath and pressed the wound.

"Kurtis, are you alright?"

Kurtis nodded as if Josh could see him. "Yeah, I'm okay," he said through clenched teeth. "Thanks for everything." Without waiting for Josh's response, Kurtis hung up and headed to "the ghetto".

The trip to the ghetto took longer than Kurtis had expected. But he didn't mind; he could feel Gunderson's existence. He was either here, or he'd left recently. Kurtis approached a building that wrote "Hotel" with green neon lights. Kurtis closed his eyes and waited for a moment. "Something's up, but I'm going in anyhow," he mumbled as he opened the door.

An old lady with dark skin and lots of make-up was sitting behind the reception desk, if a foldable table and chair could be referred to as a "reception desk". A smile formed on the woman's thick lips, which made her look like a bulldog.

"Looking for something, _mon amour_?" She asked in a flirtatious tone.

Kurtis lifted his left eyebrow. "As a matter of fact, I am. Someone6ft 4, bald with a beard and moustache. German. Sound familiar?"

The woman puckered her lips thoughtfully and shrugged. "I'm an old lady, how would I remember who comes in and who goes out? I run a busy place."

_I bet you do_, Kurtis thought sarcastically and reached into his pocket. "Maybe Mr. Abraham Lincoln can freshen your memory," he said, waving the five-dollar bill in the air.

Her eyes lit up greedily. "Maybe I have seen him around here. But that's the strength of one Abraham. You know what they say: Two Abrahams are better than one." She cackled at her own joke.

Kurtis took out another five-dollar bill. "Is anything coming back to you?"

"Oh yes, the German. He's in Room 15. I want no violence; I'm in enough trouble already." She watched Kurtis climbing the stairs, then yelled: "Where's my money, you pig?"

Kurtis turned around, smiled and shrugged. "You never told me you wanted them." He kept climbing the stairs, ignoring the woman's swearing.

A feeling of anxiety came over him as he walked up to Gunderson's room. The door was open; something obviously was wrong. Kurtis pushed the door with his foot. The door creaked opened and revealed a horrific sight:

Martin Gunderson was on the wall with a knife on his throat. From what Kurtis could tell, the knife had pierced through the wall like a tack and made Martin stand on his feet. With his eyes and mouth wide open and blood trickling down to the dirty carpet, this was a rated-R movie scene.

Kurtis shook his head in disgust. _Even for Gunderson, this is a bad ending. I wonder who did this to him? _

Just then, something whizzed past him. Kurtis dodged left and saw a cloaked figure ready to attack. The figure pounced at him; Kurtis stared and made the figure fly to the other side of the room. It hit the wall with a hard thud. Kurtis approached the person, pulled down the hood and saw a young black girl squirming to free herself.

"Why did you do this to him?" Kurtis asked in French. She spat at him and started calling him names that would make a man blush. Kurtis just got angry.

"Look kid, we can do this the easy way, or the hard way. Now tell me, who sent you?"

The girl glared at him. "I'm not telling you anything. You're going to kill me anyway; why should I waste my breath?"

Kurtis' jaw slid right as an impatient look settled in his eyes. "Well, you're right about that. But I can make in painful, or I can make it quick. Your call." As he said that, Kurtis touched her arm and started to drain her energy.

The girl's eyeballs pooped open and she gasped with pain. But she didn't utter a peep. Kurtis went on draining without batting an eye. The girl slumped on the floor, staring ahead lifelessly. Kurtis had to hand it to her; she hadn't said a word. Kurtis decided to search her, maybe he'd find out why she was there. As he searched her pockets, Kurtis found something heavy. He started to breathe faster as he unraveled the cloth around the object. Kurtis let out a whoosh when he saw the Silver Hyena staring at him. So this is what she was after! My God, it looks so lifelike! He thought as he put it in his backpack. Kurtis ran to the fire escape; he had no intention of running into that old witch again. Now I ought to call the girls, he thought as he ran to the bus stop. Luckily, a bus was waiting for the people to get on. "I feel lucky today," he mumbled gleefully.

Chapter 8 

Haven't done anything yet, but I've already had it, Lara thought angrily as she got off the plane that-at last- landed on Sydney. I just hate being dragged into stuff and it just finds me. Why didn't I tell him to deal with his own bloody problems? At least I wouldn't be chasing a bloody dream now, she thought and rolled her eyes disgustedly.

I don't even know what to begin with. Lara stared at the airport's ceiling and sighed. God, help me keep my sanity! And good luck helping me! A light bulb flicked on in her head. I know someone who might help me, she thought with a glimmer of hope.

Lara went outside and dialed a number on her mobile phone. A man with a heavy French accent answered: "_Oui_?"

"Jean-Yves, it's Lara."

"Lara, _mon ami_, how are you? Rumor says you're searching for something important."

Lara was a bit surprised. "I always forget how fast gossip spreads."

"Ah yes, my dear. I also know that some demented cult is after those trinkets as well."

Lara grinned. "I suppose you already know where it is then."

Jean-Yves took a breath. "The boomerang in broken in two. One half is somewhere in the desert. The other half is somewhere sunk in the Gulf of Carpenteria. That's all I know so far."

"The desert? The Gulf? Come on Jean-Yves, there must be more!"

Jean-Yves sighed. "Sorry dear, that's all I know. That's all everyone knows."

Lara huffed. "Okay. Thank you."

"I wish I could do more." Both hung up in unison. Lara slumped on a plastic chair and looked blankly ahead. What am I to do? For a moment, it seemed as if the sky was falling down on her. Lara stood up and went back inside the airport; she had decided to rent a Jeep. There was a rental agency and fortunately, they had a Range Rover at the moment; old, but in good shape. At least this went smoothly, Lara thought as the shopkeeper handed her the keys. Her mobile rang while she was walking to the parking lot. It was Jean-Yves.

"Lara, I may have found something."

"Keep going; I like the sound of this."

"Well, there's a temple ruin in the desert; the Great Sandy Desert. Some pagans built it, but it's not the Aborigines. Some of it has been revealed during a dig."

"That narrows it down," Lara replied sarcastically. "What about the other half? Is it for sure it's buried in the Gulf?"

Lara heard swishing of paper, someone speaking French, then Jean-Yves got back to her. "Nearly. It's been narrowed down within a 400 km radius; determining Albatross Bay as the epicenter; it's most likely to be buried there. Oh, I almost forgot to mention, the temple is near the swamps of Lake Dora. That's all that's been found out at the moment."

Lara smiled. "Thank you Jean-Yves, you've been a great help."

"I'll call again if I find anything else."

Lara shut her phone off after hearing the click. At least I know where to begin, she thought as she started the car and drove out of the parking lot.

About a week later, Lara was standing in front of a pile of rubble, trying to figure out what it was. She got closer to examine it. _If this is a digging site, where are all the archeologists and crew? _She thought as she looked around. Lara stopped a few inches before the pile and studied it. A statue of a spitting cobra gave Lara the evidence he needed. "This is the one," Lara said to herself as she crawled through the opening.

The passage seemed to become narrower and after a while, Lara could no longer fit. She lit up a flare and looked around. All over the wall were drawings of snakes. Some were shedding their skin, some snakes were swallowing their prey and some were spitting poison, like the cobra statue at the entrance. Lara noticed the path turned right, so she followed it. The path ended with a ladder down. Lara lowered herself carefully, and climbed down. When she landed, she looked around and noticed another crawlspace; there she found bottles of dust. Antidotes, I suppose, thought Lara and crawled out. She noticed a small fire pit ahead. Lara sprinted and jumped across. This new room was a bit small and musty. From what Lara could make out from the wall paintings, this room was the sacrificial chamber. Lara noticed the altar in the center and went up to it. There were skulls and bones scattered around the bloodstained altar. Lara examined some of the skulls and came across a gruesome deduction: The pagans sacrificed children for their snake-god. She put down one of the skulls in disgust. There was a wooden door on the southern wall, Lara kicked it down and headed in. Another hallway was ahead with a wide gap. Lara looked up and noticed the rotten vines that covered the entire ceiling. Hope they'll carry me; she thought as she jumped up to grab a branch. As soon as she touched one, the other side snapped and started swinging back and forth. Lara swung a little bit more to increase her speed. But the branch was not so sturdy and started cracking from the other side. Lara let go and landed on the other side while the branch broke and fell down the pit with a loud thud. Lara sighed with relief as she walked on.

There was a small alcove above her. Lara jumped up and found an amulet and a small gem. She picked up the stone and decided it was quartz. Lara put the trinkets in her backpack and jumped down.

Ahead of her was a room with a large statue in the center. Lara approached it to get a closer look. A naked woman was cradling a snake in her arms. The snake twirled around her body, covering her "private parts". The woman seemed to be gazing affectionately at the snake; stone tears were placed on her cheeks.

"Breathtaking," Lara said under her breath. She noticed dents on the statue's neck. "I wonder?" She said out loud as she took out the amulet she'd found before. Lara looked at the amulet, then at the statue. "Let's see what happens." She put the amulet on the statue.

A pale yellow light started to shine from the statue's and serpent's eyes, giving them life. The naked woman came to life with her snake. The woman straightened up and looked around.

"After all this time," she said with a deep voice. She noticed Lara. "You haven't come to worship me, have you?"

Lara shook her head. "I don't even know who you are."

The woman sighed and the snake hissed in unison. "We are Yowan-Te."

"Both you and the snake?"

"Te and I are one, inseparable, however you mortals call it." She slowly walked up to Lara and stared deep into her eyes. Lara found her yellow-green eyes creepy, but didn't dare to move a muscle, as she was aware of the snake waving its tongue it the air and rattling its tail in a threatening way.

"I know what you're looking for," Yowan said at last.

"Do you?"

"Yes. The half of the funny object hidden here. I know you mean well." She sneered slightly. "Good luck in finding it."

Lara blinked and found the statue back at its place, the way it was when Lara had entered the room.

"I really need to see a shrink," she said to herself as she walked out of the room.

Chapter 9

"God, I'm so sick and tired!" Ayla exclaimed as she sat on her bed. It had been a week after the battle with Rouze, five days after her arrival in Prague. Here she was, in another cheap hotel, trying to figure out what to do.

During the past five days, she'd been everywhere, from the posh high-society clubs to the holes where junkies lay. No one seemed to know anything about the Cabal; those who did were too scared to say anything. I need to get out or I'm going to lose what's left of my mind! She thought as she slammed the door behind her.

An hour later, Ayla was sitting across the Grand Clock (she didn't know its actual name), sipping on a latté. A tall man came and sat across her table. She was about to tell him off, but he started speaking: "Don't misunderstand me Ayla, I mean well."

Ayla's eyebrows went up in surprise. "How do you know my name?"

"It doesn't matter, I know what you're after."

"And that would be?"

"Rouze. Revenge. The Cabal. How am I doing so far?" The man's green eyes glistened sarcastically.

Ayla nodded. "Not bad for a stranger," she mocked.

"Cal me Ivan."

"Ok, Ivan. What's on your mind?" Ayla raked her hair back with her fingers and waited for his reply.

Ivan leaned forward. "I have maps of the sewers. We can reach the Cabal via the tunnels."

"We? No way, Ivan. I go in there alone."

"No way Ayla, we go in together," Ivan replied, imitating Ayla. "I have unfinished business with Rouze." As he said that, Ayla noticed the scar that stretched across his cheekbone.

"He did that to you?"

"It's beyond that. He killed a colleague of mine. Luddick. It happened when Luddick was preparing a story about the Cabal."

"You're a journalist seeking for revenge then." Ayla paused. "Why should I believe you? You cold be one of Rouze's men, luring me in the sewers to kill me."

Ivan shrugged. "Could be Ayla. Could be. You just have to trust your instincts."

Ayla's instincts told her not to let her guard down. "Very well. I trust you enough o help me. So, what do we do?"

Just then, the large clock stroke twelve; Ivan waited for the sound to die down. Meet me here an hour later. I'll have gathered all my supplies and so would you. You'd better be quick Ayla."

She shout him an enquiring look as she left the latté money on the table. "Agreed."

You're not the only one with a plan, she thought as she headed to the hotel.

"I can't believe I'm doing this," Ayla grumbled as she followed Ivan through the sewers.

Ivan didn't reply as he walked on. He stopped in front of a ladder. "This is it."

Ayla silently took out her gun. "Indeed Ivan, it is." She shot him in the back of his neck. He let out a low groan as he fell down on the concrete with a thud and splash.

Ayla took his backpack and closed his eyes. "Sorry dear, I just couldn't trust you enough." She climbed up the ladder and opened the sewer lid. _At last, I shall have my vengeance!_ She thought triumphantly.

A few days earlier… 

"Yes, Miss Lavrenovich, it's me again. Yes, I need to know where she is at the moment. Sure, I can wait."

Kurtis was at the airport, trying to locate Ayla (as you may have guessed). He had a bad keeling about her. According to what Miss Lavrenovich had said, her resurrection may have altered her personality, making her a bit unstable Kurtis had to find her and help her out.

"Mr. Trent, Ayla is in Prague, Czech Republic. Albert Rouze lives there too. I think she's after revenge, not just the trinket you're looking for. Now, for my bill-"

Kurtis cut her off. "When this is all done, I'll pay for all your expenses. Goodbye." Kurtis slammed the receiver and headed to the nearest flight agency. Lucky for him, a passenger had cancelled his flight, so Kurtis bought the plane ticket and dashed to the gate. Soon he was in the plane, heading to Prague.

In the meantime, Lara was still in Yowan-Te's temple, encountering pits of all sorts. Her tongue was stuck to the roof of her mouth, so she took a sip from her water bottle. Then she headed to the room, which seemed to be the final chamber.

"Congrats, my dear. You managed to survive all the obstacles." It was Yowan-Te, standing near the north wall.

Lara shrugged. "Thank you, I guess. So, do you know where the first half of the boomerang?"

Yowan-Te made a gesture towards the north wall. On the wall seemed to be a jigsaw puzzle. "When you complete the puzzle, it will reveal a riddle. Good luck."

Te hissed and both disappeared behind a puff of smoke that smelled like sulphur.

"Let's see what we've got," murmured Lara.

Compared to most puzzles she'd solved in the past, this jigsaw puzzle was quite easy, and Lara finished it in no time. The riddle she was expecting had revealed: _"It has no door nor lid, but inside a treasure is hid." _ Below were three buttons: One shaped like a dagger, one shaped like an egg, and the one on the far left was shaped like a eucalyptus leaf. This is easy, Lara thought as she pushed the egg-shaped button. A tile slid loudly on the floor, revealing a shaft that went down. Finally, Lara thought as she jumped down.

There it was, right in front of her feet! She picked up the first half of the broken boomerang. It was plain, wooden and brown; one wouldn't think it had such an importance. _One down, one to go_, Lara thought triumphantly as she climbed out.

Chapter10 

Kurtis stepped out of the airport. He took a deep breath as a wave of nostalgia swept over him and hurt his chest. He groaned and clutched his wound. _Won't this ever end?_ He thought in agony. When the pain died down, he started thinking about how to find Ayla. Kurtis made sure no one was around and used his far-see ability to locate her; Ayla was sitting in a café near the big clock in the town center. "Taxi!" He called out.

About twenty minutes later, Kurtis got off the taxi and looked for Ayla. There she was, with a man across her. He walked up towards them, close enough to listen, far enough to remain unnoticed. Kurtis listened to their conversation carefully. _A raid to Albert Rouze? I definitely won't miss that,_ he thought as he watched them leave. He got up to follow Ayla. If the alteration was as bad as Diana predicted, there was no telling what Ayla might do.

Lara found the cave completely different during her way out. The paths had changed and snakes were everywhere. Did the wall paintings come to life or something? She thought in surprise as she watched the snakes hiss at her. _This is the place for Indiana Jones_, Lara thought gleefully as she shot a cobra in the head. _Where did the ritual chambers go? And the skulls! They-_

Low clicking noises interrupted Lara's thoughts; she'd recognize skeleton warriors' sound anywhere. Lara started running faster. "I wish I'd brought my crossbow with me!" She cried out loud as she ran towards the pit. Lara jumped across, landed gracefully and watched the skeletons gather around the other side. She gave them the finger and went on.

The crawlspace in the entrance had collapsed, revealing a hole above. Lara grabbed the edge, pulled herself up and rolled down outside. To her surprise, the temple started to collapse. Jean-Yves will be sad, she thought as she started the jeep and headed to find the second half of the boomerang.

Ayla looked around Rouze's place. _Not bad for an apprentice_, she thought as she looked around the so-called factory. From what she had read from Ivan's notes, this was their new secret headquarters; Lara had destroyed the previous one. _Good girl_, Ayla thought appreciatively. Ayla searched Ivan's backpack that had a pass for the gate. "Here it is," Ayla mumbled and walked up to the gate. "4-5-7-11-19," she repeated while tapping the numbers on the panel. The door beeped softly and Ayla pushed it open. Ayla took out her gun and looked around, she was listening her surroundings carefully. Ayla hadn't heard the door close; this worried her a bit. She heard loud footsteps coming her way. With her heart throbbing at her chest, she waited with her finger on the trigger. Ayla was surprised and relieved to see that it was Kurtis.

"What are you doing here? When did you come here? How did you come here? You gave me a fright!" Ayla cried and shook her head.

Kurtis shrugged and walked up to her. "I'm ahead of schedule, so I thought I'd check up on you."

"But how did you find me?"

"Oh, I have friends."

"Fine then. You wouldn't mind helping me retrieve the diamond, in that case."

"Okay."

Ayla studied Ivan's notes, the looked up. A chain was dangling from the ceiling. "We need to pull that."

"Allow me," replied Kurtis. He held his hand parallel to the floor as he jump up, his energy giving him a boost.

Then he grabbed the chain and yanked it. A shelf near the wall slid and revealed an opening. Kurtis let go and followed Ayla in. the warehouse seemed to continue forever.

"And here I was, hoping for some action," Ayla muttered when she saw the empty warehouse.

"Didn't you have enough already?" Kurtis asked, implying Ivan.

"I didn't trust him," Ayla replied coldly.

"Oh, and that gave you the right to kill him!" Kurtis shot back sarcastically.

"Do you want to be next?" Ayla replied in the same cold tone.

Ant I thought Diana was exaggerating; Ayla came back a Terminator! Kurtis thought in horror.

They reached another door with a simple lock. Ayla's index finger became steely gray as she picked on the lock with it.

The atmosphere had completely changed when they entered through the door. This room seemed to be a lab of some sort, with abominations on dissecting tables. Surprisingly (!), not a person was in sight.

"This is getting creepier," Ayla muttered as she walked up to one of the dissecting tables and lifted the cloth. A creature, which neither Ayla nor Kurtis could identify, was on the table.

"Very creepy. It looks like a big beetle," Kurtis remarked and paused.

"Indeed."

Ayla touched the creature. She looked at Kurtis in shock. "It's not dead."

As she said that, the beetle leapt at her and bit her arm. Ayla yelled in pain and kicked it. Kurtis took out his gun and started firing at it. Strangely, the beetle started spitting fire at them. Kurtis dove left, pulling Ayla with him.

"I've an idea," whispered Ayla to Kurtis as she stood up. She glared at the beetle as water shot out from her palms. The force of the water turned the beetle upside down; its legs dangled in the air. Ayla pounced on the beetle and started jumping up and down to squish its internal organs. The beetle screeched in agony, but a minute later, it was all over. Kurtis tugged Ayla off the creature's body. He saw the pleasure she had from killing, she was glowing like a fluorescent lamp.

Ayla felt uncomfortable because of Kurtis' gaze. "What?"

Kurtis shook his head. "You're disgusting. Let's go."

Albert Rouze watched them leave the lab, using his bowl full of holy water. True, he had security cameras that recorded their every move but he liked the bowl much better. He saw this as a way of commemorating his masters, Eckhart and Karel; they'd taught him the secrets of The Dark Arts. Albert had been very promising during his training, so Eckhart had chosen him to be the next leader, should anything happen to Eckhart.

He felt a deep hatred towards the two remaining Lux Veritatis members and that Croft woman. They'd messed up all their plans. He was going to kill Kurtis Trent first. After all, he'd been causing lots of trouble since the past two years. He was also responsible of finding that Croft woman and that Turkish wanna-be.

He crackled his fingers in pleasure and anticipation. He couldn't wait for a rematch with that Turkish woman. "Things get better and even more exciting…" He mumbled gleefully."

Chapter 11 

Lara stopped her car when she entered the town of Weipa. It had the usual; a pub, a clinic, a general store, and a population of a few thousand that increased during the tourist season. Everyone knew each other, so the strangers stood in the crowd. Lara headed to the general store to fill her supply of chocolate bars, painkillers and first-aid kits. Lara pushed the door open; the door creaked softly and a rusty bell rang above it. A young woman sat behind the cash register.

"Hi there. How can I help you? Obviously, you're not from around here. Have you come treasure hunting? Perhaps you've heard of Mr. Anderson," the young girl chatted away.

"Excuse me, but which Mr. Anderson are you talking about?"

"Colin Anderson. He's an expert on finding sunken treasure. I'd seen him on Discovery Channel once. So, I asked for his autograph, but he looked at me as if I was some lunatic! Can you believe that?"

"Yes, imagine that," Lara replied in a slightly sarcastic tone. "So, did he tell you what he was looking for?"

"No. So, do you have all you need?"

Lara paid the money and prepared to leave. "Do you know where I can find Mr. Anderson?"

"He's probably out diving. Check out the boat rental company near the port."

"Thanks."

Lara knew Colin. He too was a student of Werner's… But Colin had an argument with Werner before the three of them were about to leave for Angkor Wat. As far as Lara knew, Colin was a bit of a rogue, and he wasn't happy the way Werner putting unseen walls around him.

Anyway, she walked up to the boat rental company near the shore. Lara noticed Colin unloading his diving equipment out of the boat. Colin looked up at Lara, the kind of look when you don't really see. It took some time to realize whom she was staring at.

"Lara? What a surprise."

"I'll agree to that," replied Lara as she walked up to Colin. "Need help?"

"Nah, I've finished." Colin sat on a crate and motioned Lara to sit across him. "So, what brought you here?"

"This." Lara showed him the boomerang piece. "I heard you were searching for something here. Coincidentally, so am I."

Colin gaped at the piece. "Where did you find that?"

"Doesn't matter." Lara stared at Colin's eyes. "You2re looking for the other piece, aren't you?"

"As a matter of fact, I am."

There was a long pause till Lara broke the silence. "So, what are you planning to do when you get the other half?"

Colin sighed and stared at the sky full of stars. "You've completely changed my plans. I'm going to have to buy the other piece from you."

"Why, to sell in the black market?"

Colin remained silent so Lara talked on. "I have an idea. Why don't _I_ buy it from you?"

Colin scratched his head. "I'm not quite following."

"I'll go on this treasure hunt with you. If we find the other piece, I'm going to pay you so you'll give me the piece and not sell it in the black market."

Colin's green eyes lit up greedily. "It's gonna cost ya."

Lara shrugged and smiled. "I'm a rich girl."

"You know, I've forgotten why I'm involved in this business in the first place," Ayla muttered. It was "Lorry-number-God-knows-what" they'd come across. Kurtis and Ayla had checked out the lorries as soon as they'd left that freaky lab.

Kurtis was surprised at how Ayla had become calm all of a sudden. "Because you're in the Lux Veritatis and we're trying to stop the remaining Cabal members from bringing total destruction," replied Kurtis.

"Oh, right." Ayla closed the box. "Why are we searching lorries anyway? I don't think a lorry would be the place to hide a diamond."

"Who knows what he has in mind," Kurtis mumbled as he jumped off the back of the lorry.

"He wants us dead, that's for sure," Ayla replied quietly. She yawned. "What time is it?"

Kurtis checked his watch. "It's 2 AM. Are you tired?"

"Very." Ayla's eyelids began to droop. "Let's call it a night, shall we?"

"Ok." Kurtis climbed back into the lorry. "Good night."

"'Night."

In the meantime, Lara and Colin were examining the maps and SONAR data Colin had with him.

"Now, I've been to every crack I can get into, except this one." He pointed a spot. "I'm too big to get through that." Then he snickered.

"I ought to give it a try then." Lara went inside to change into her wetsuit. She gathered her scuba gear and went outside. Colin was staring at the water.

"I'm ready," she called out.

Colin shrugged. "Don't let me keep you. That cavern is in the northwest of the boat. I'll be monitoring you from here. Good luck."

Lara nodded and dove in.

Though it was autumn, the seawater was very warm. Lara had dove so many times she'd lost count; still, everything underwater amazed her. But today was different; Lara headed northwest like Colin had instructed. She easily noticed the gap; it was wide enough for her to barely get through. Lara swam up to the gap, stuck her hand to grab the wall and pulled herself through. The gap widened a bit after the beginning. The narrow tunnel curved left, then up. To Lara's surprise, she saw surface. She slowly got out and looked around. The surroundings reminded her of Eckhart's Lost Domain. Lara put on her boots but didn't bother to change. Lara grabbed her pistol and walked in. Two ropes were dangling above a scorpion pit. She stuck her pistol in the holster and rubbed her hands. "Here we go!" She exclaimed and jumped forward. Lara could hear the snapping and crawling noises of those critters. This made her swing faster; she jumped and grabbed the last rope. There was a teeny rock she could land on, but it was too far away from her. "Then we'll try this," she muttered as she grabbed the stonewall. Lara slowly climbed down and safely landed on the rock. There was a lever on it; Lara pulled it to see what would happen. Soft rumblings were followed by louder ones as the floor became jagged and uneven. Only then Lara noticed another opening way above her. Guess there's no other alternative, she thought as she started to climb the rocks and entered through the opening.

It seemed to be a small chamber, a burial chamber perhaps. Lara noticed the little pagan figurines around the sarcophagus that lay silently in the middle of a pentagram. She walked up to it and noticed spike traps on the sarcophagus. Lara carefully disarmed the trap ad pushed the lid open. There were so many trinkets with the skeleton Lara assumed it was a woman. The rather small skull, narrow jaw and wide pelvis supported her assumption. With her body was a sword, lots of arrowheads, pagan figurines (Lara believed that they symbolized the sun) a rusty copper helmet and armor. The most interesting piece, however, was a jagged brown object. Lara picked it up and exclaimed: "Eureka!" in triumph. The other half of the boomerang lay still on her palm. She picked up a scroll and examined it. The language seemed to be a mixture of Greek and Hebrew. Jean-Yves will want to see this! She thought as she climbed down the chamber. Hopefully, this will help stop Rouze and what's left of the Cabal. The Cabal reminded Lara of Werner and tears welled up in her eyes. A teardrop fell down near her boot and Lara climbed down.

Chapter12 

At last, Ayla and Kurtis were in the final room of the Cabal's new headquarters, which hopefully would be last. Ayla and Kurtis were searching every nook and cranny for a trace of the diamond. For some strange reason, Kurtis felt very uncomfortable. Ayla noticed this and asked: "What's wrong?"

Kurtis looked around. "I feel like we're being watched."

Ayla's gaze shifted to the gargoyle statue. She didn't know what it was doing in a warehouse, but it didn't matter. Kurtis noticed what she was looking at and laughed. "Oh, come on. Don't you think you're exaggerating?"

"Shh!" Ayla put her finger on her lips and approached the statue. She touched it and pulled her hand back. "It's warm."

Suddenly, the statue shattered into pieces and the gargoyle started flapping its wings and shrieking. Ayla screamed and jumped back. Kurtis took out his gun and aimed at the gargoyle's head. The bullet pierced the gargoyle's skull, leaving it lying lifeless on the floor, with blood slowly oozing from the hole.

"Eww," Ayla said under her breath. She had an idea; first she trans formed her fingers into steel claws and dissected the creature.

"Look what I found!" she exclaimed as she took out the diamond from the gargoyle's stomach. The diamond gave off a dim light, as if it was trying to be modest.

"Wow." That's all Kurtis could say. After a long silence, he spoke up: "Let's get out of here. Then we'll figure out what to do with it."

An evil laughter echoed from the walls. "You'll die Mr. Trent, as simple as that."

"Rouze," Ayla muttered. There was a strange sparkle in her eyes as she looked around. "Come out Albert, let's finish this!"

Rouze appeared in a puff of smoke with a strange creature on his shoulder. He noticed Kurtis' gaze. "This is one of my tricks Master Eckhart taught me. You may have killed him, but his work will be completed. The Nephilim will come to life." He sighed and pasted a sad expression. "Too bad you won't be able to see it."

Ayla's _eyes_ sparkled with fury. "Yes, because _you'll _be the one who's dead!" With those words, she pounced on Albert and punched him. Albert staggered a bit, and then pushed Ayla with one hand. Ayla flew to the north, crashed against the wall and fell. Ayla slowly got up and wiped the blood off her mouth.

"You know, that hurt!"

Albert chuckled evilly. "That's just the beginning, _Mein Schatz_." He ran up to Ayla in a split second and slapped her so hard she turned 360 degrees.

Kurtis took out his gun and fired. Of course, he didn't know that Albert was bulletproof, so he stared in utter shock as the bullets bounced and fell.

"What the devil!" Kurtis exclaimed.

Albert laughed again. "Don't worry Herr Trent, I'm saving you for later. In the meantime, you can play with my pet imp. Lilith, kill him!"

The red demon took off from Albert's shoulder and flew at Kurtis, screeching at the same time.

Ayla took advantage of the moment and kicked Albert in the crotch. Albert moaned in pain and gasped. Ayla scratched his face with her steel claws. Rouze howled as he clutched his cheek, then he took a deep breath; the scratch wounds on his face disappeared.

Ayla was flabbergasted. "Oh, come on! Am I supposed to drive a stake through your heart or what?"

Albert smiled. "I'll give you a hint; that was a close call."

Kurtis was dodging the fireballs and weird magic missiles Lilith was puking out. Since she was small and nimble, Lilith dodged the bullets easily. Kurtis felt a tingle at his belt. _Of course, why haven't I thought of it before?_ He thought as he put the gun in the holster; his Chirugai spun around and flew at Lilith. The demon dodged the weapon and stuck out her tongue at Kurtis. For a moment, the Chirugai suspended in mid-air. Then, when Kurtis moved his gaze, it took off and in less than a second, it chopped Lilt's head off.

Albert grabbed Ayla by her throat and lifted her up. Ayla swung her legs at him, trying to kick Albert, but her effort came up with no result.

Albert sneered at Ayla one last time. "Nice knowing you dear." He squeezed her throat with all his might._ Snap!_ Ayla lay on the floor like a puppet.

Kurtis stared at them with wide eyes. It all happened as if it was in slow motion. His eyes narrowed with anger and hatred as he chucked his Chirugai at Albert. The Chirugai bounced against his chest and fell with a clink. Albert smiled at him sarcastically and waited.

Is this guy made of rubber or something? Kurtis thought in terror. Rubber? That's it! He took out the bottle of sulphuric acid he'd nicked from the lab and threw the acid at Albert's face.

"No!" Albert cried as the acid dissolved his skin, revealing his muscles and a part of his skull.

"Let's see if you're bulletproof now!" Kurtis cried as he fired at him. On bullet shot Albert through the eye and got stuck on his brain. Albert fell forward and remained like that. Kurtis walked up to Albert; he wasn't going to make the same mistake he did with Boaz. He emptied his shell on Albert Rouze.

He stared at the acid bottle. What kind of idiot would keep something that can kill him? He thought as he lit up a match and set Albert and Lilith's corpse on fire.

Now came the hardest part. Kurtis walked slowly to Ayla's dead body. He stared at her pretty face in sorrow and stroked her long black hair. She looks so peaceful, as if she's sleeping. Kurtis picked her up and turned around. He noticed the flames' reflection on the wall as Kurtis and Ayla's shadows danced on it. The only sound was the corpses' crackling and the thud of Kurtis' boots.

_A week later, some cemetery in Istanbul:_

Lara, Kurtis and Jean-Yves stood in front of Ayla's grave. It had been five days after her burial. Since none of them knew how funerals were prepared according to Islamic rules and Turkish traditions, Nurdan, Ayla's secretary, had dealt with all the arrangements.

Lara just watched all this as if she was watching a movie in the theater. It all seemed so distant, so unreal… She just couldn't believe Ayla was gone; they'd been together nearly all of their lives. It seemed to Lara that a part of her had gone with Ayla, leaving a vast hole in her.

Kurtis wasn't any better. Since both of them were members of Lux Veritatis, they had a special bond that tied them together. Secretly, Kurtis wanted a bit more, but Ayla was gone, and he could feel her spirit leaving this mortal earth. He ran his fingers over the concrete gravestone. "She's gone," he said softly and sighed. He looked around; it was unusually foggy that day. The fog gave a calm, gray and depressing appearance to the whole city. It seemed as if Istanbul itself was mourning over Ayla's death. Kurtis watched the seagulls fly around screech at each other. A lonely crow flew and perched on a nearby branch. He sighed again and faced Jean-Yves, who waited in a respectful silence.

"So Jean-Yves, are we going to do the ritual?"

"Yes, I'll start." Jean-Yves cleared his throat. "Well, for one, finding a scroll written like this is quite intriguing. I mean, you found this in Australia Lara, but it's written in a hybrid alphabet of Hebrew and Greek. It took me quite a while to figure it out.

From what I read so far, this priestess-warrior had probably migrated from Anatolia. So I think she was an Amazon priestess; that may explain the weapons you found there." Jean-Yves took a deep breath. "Here's a paragraph about the ritual: _To seal the Nephilim in the web of time, follow this order, light, laughter, stick. Bury them and chant the following."_ Jean-Yves paused to take the trinkets out of his pocket and dug a small hole with his hands in front of Ayla's grave. "Light first." He buried the diamond and chanted what was written on the scroll. He did the same with the hyena and the boomerang. When he finished chanting, a faint white light emerged from the whole. A shadowy figure appeared out of nowhere.

Lara recognized it. "Yowan-Te," she whispered.

Yowan smiled and Te hissed. "Thank you for what you have done. Our souls will be able to rest, at last. When she stopped talking, another figure came out of the light. She had a rusty helmet on her head and a copper armor, which protected her slim body.

"You must be the warrior-priestess," Kurtis remarked.

The priestess's face was stern. "You violated my sacred resting chamber. But since it was for a good cause, I can ignore it this time. Anyway, congratulations. You managed to finish what we have started thousands of years ago. You all are mighty warriors, a rare trait found in your days. As for your friend, don't worry; she's in good hands. Take this as a token of our gratitude." She handed Lara a chain with a pendant of a snake wrapped around the sun. Then all of them disappeared, leaving Lara, Kurtis and Jean-Yves flabbergasted.

Kurtis broke the silence. "That was interesting," he said sarcastically. "Thought I doubt it's over." He and Jean-Yves started walking towards the exit. "Are you coming?" Kurtis asked Lara.

"In a bit," Lara whispered.

She stood and sobbed in front of Ayla's grave for a few minutes that seemed like hours. When her tears ran dry, she wiped her eyes and looked at Ayla's grave again. Before she left, Lara touched the gravestone and ran her fingers across Ayla's name.

"Goodbye, my dear friend," she said in a choked up voice and slowly walked to the exit.


End file.
